Out of the Blue
by kneldon
Summary: Recently having lost his best friend, Mako is looking for a purpose in life. What if he found it with the avatar and his group? Still following the main story, ships yet to be determined. Katara/OC, slight AU
1. Chapter 1: Confronting the council

**Aaaah first story _ever_! I'm so excited, hope you guys like it. Sorry if there are spelling mistakes, but English isn't my first language, so some things can be hard for me to explain.**

**I won't keep you any longer from reading, so please enjoy!**

Chapter 1: Confronting the council

Life isn't easy at the northern water tribe, not only for women but for men as well. Standing in front of the council of elders is a daunting experience for even the bravest of warriors,… save for Mako.

Two servants of Chief Arnook were doing their monthly thouch-ups of the palace, which shows cracks every now and then, when they see a young warrior going into the great hall. "Hey Koda, why is Mako being summoned by the elders?" came the whisper from Koda's left. "What? Haven't you heard Tavi? He is to wed Kyra, but he has never had the intention of marrying his best friend." After a short pause he continued, "You know I can't blame him, it is said that she's in love with a lowly ice-jack herder."

"Why would that be a problem? It's not as if an ice-jack herder would ever be permitted to court the daughter of a high-ranked merchant." came the scowl from Tavi.

"True, but Mako doesn't want to brake Kyra's heart by taking away her chance of marrying her true love."

Upon hearing this Tavi blew out a snort and with a lot of sarcasm answered: "Oh no, turning 17 and not being able to marry your first love! It must be the end of the world for that poor girl!"

"Oh c'mon Tavi, you must remember what it was like to be young and in love, with no other care in the world." came the amused response from Koda.

"Actually I don't, my wife and I are married for over 30 years. And let me tell you that is a loooooooong time. My teenage years are long but forgotten, for they were full of disappointments."

"For you maybe…, but I got lucky with my wife. I can still feel my hearth thudding when I see her nurturing our children and taking care of the house. I think I'll never get sick of the image of her cooking over the fire with our baby-girl on her back." said Koda with a dreamy look on his face.

"Trust me it'll fade…, now let's get back to work before Arnook comes back and sees that we're behind on the walls."

"That's your opinion Tavi, but I don't think I want another scolding from Arnook. He's probably in a bad mood after being finished talking to Mako."

Mako entered the great hall with a determined feeling in his gut, he would not be scared into marrying his best friend and in the process breaking her heart. She would surely hate him forever! He always dreamt of finding true love, but not like this. Not with his best friend getting hurt and being miserable for the rest of their lives together.

He loved her sure enough, but like a sister. He has known her since they were 4 years old, she soaked him during their 'waterbending lessons for beginners' class and their friendship had developed from that moment on. Being a member of the northern water tribe, he was thought to think lesser of females but being friends with Kyra had him knowing that women could do everything men could. She was very much like her great-aunt, who was famous for leaving the northpole for the south when she was told she _had_ to marry a man not of her own choosing. She too was very stubborn and opinionated.

Watching Mako enter the great hall, Arnook remembered the shock revolving around his birth. After he heard that a baby was born into their tribe with blonde hair, he immediately thought the baby had some kind of sickness.

After getting the child to a healer, and she didn't find a problem, Arnook thought that the spirits were somehow involved. Watching that little baby grow up to be a strong young man of nearly 1.9 meters, he knew he was going to be a great waterbender. When he showed interest in fighting with weapons, Arnook was surprised. Nearly all waterbenders believe that bending will be sufficient in their survival, but not Mako. He told his weapons master that he wanted to honor his tribe's culture by mastering **all** the aspects there are to know about fighting in the north pole… not just waterbending. Though he yet had to play his part in this world, Arnook knew it would be somewhere in the near future.

While Mako was walking up to the council, he noticed they were all staring intently at him. Especially master Pakku, who seems to hold a grudge against him ever since he defended Kyra a few years back. When she tried to ask master Pakku for lessons in waterbending, he shooed her of and said that the only thing she needed to know was how to cook, clean and heal.

"Mako,…" he was pulled out of his inner thoughts when Chief Arnook began to address him "… you were called here before us to further discuss your marriage with Kyra."

"Yes Chief, I know" came his dull response.

"I came to understand that you have objected to this betrothal. May I ask why you are reluctant to go through with it?"

"With all due respect Chief Arnook, but she is my best friend who is in love with another, and thus it is impossible for me to uphold the traditions of our tribe." Mako managed to say in his most formal tone of voice.

With a surprised look on his face, Arnook replied: "It is not uncommon for best friends to engage in marital union…, they are actually happier when they get to marry a friend instead of someone they have never met." Arnook knew this to be true because of his daughter Princess Yue. She was betrothed to Hahn, a good warrior hailing from an influential family. Ever since Arnook signed off on Hahn's request to marry his daughter, Yue was more silent and not very prone to engage in conversation with her father. He knew she wouldn't mention it, but he knew she was unhappy with his decision…, he saw the look on her face after all.

Confused by Arnook's statement, Mako figured they would disregard Kyra's love for the ice-yak herder. " That is not the problem I was referring to Chief, I cannot break her heart by taking her away from her love. It would surely kill her and make her hate me. I do not want to marry her if she doesn't want me for herself." he said passionately.

In one fluid movement, quite impressive for a man his age, Pakku stood up with an angry look on his face and half-yelled in suppressed anger: " She will do what she is told, even if she is in love with a mere herder… and you will obey as well." And with that he left the great hall leaving Mako and the council behind.

Watching Pakku leave, Arnook sighed and looked at Mako. " Do not worry about master Pakku, he is quite strict in his teachings about upholding the tribe's customs."

Chuckling, Mako answered: " Oh believe me I know, he _is_ my teacher after all."

Arnook saw the troubling look that was behind those bright blue eyes and he knew he had to talk with the young waterbender/warrior privately. So he looked to his left and right, took on his most regal posture and addressed the council with a booming voice. "If the council would be so kind to let me talk to this young man in private?" With a questioning look, the 5 men stood up from their seats and left the great hall to attend to other matters than the lovesick youth.

Now standing face to face with the tribal chief, Mako grew increasingly more nervous. There were even little beads of sweat forming on his brow. Upon seeing Mako's nervous stance, Arnook thought it was time to end his torture and say something to the waterbender to make him less edgy. "Listen Mako, I understand the position you are in, but the council doesn't. They would never allow that herder to marry Kyra… it would bring shame on her family, and that's something her father can do without right now."

"But she's my best friend, if I were to marry her she would blame me. I just can't do that to her Chief."

Arnook respected that which other elders in the council didn't : a close friendship with a woman, other than your wife, was not heard of in the icy lands of the north. " _sigh_ What do you want me to do Mako, you are one of our best waterbenders _**and**_ you're gifted with the axe. Your father was honored to hear that you had a chance at marrying Kyra."

Yes, Mako remembered his heated discussion with his father. He wanted to bring great pride to the family by marrying his youngest son to a daughter of one of the most powerful merchants in the north pole. But Mako wasn't easy to persuade, and here he is talking to the chief trying to annul his betrothal.

"I know that Chief, but I want to marry for love, not to help my family up on the social ladder. U are the leader of the elders, surely there is _something _u can do to stop all this!" Surprised by his sudden outburst, Mako quickly apologized for his rude behavior towards his chief.

Looking up into Mako's blue eyes, Arnook could see the love that sparkled in them. Taking in his appearance, he knew that this boy was going to be a great warrior and husband someday. Seeing that he switched his stance from nervous to confident just moments ago, told him he could deal with a though situation appropriately. "You really love her, don't you Mako?"

Being caught off guard, Mako blushed but soon recomposed himself and with a confident voice answered: "Yes… I consider her my sister"

Knowing the answer already, Arnook backfired: "That's probably better than marrying her to a stranger. Why don't you marry her, it's better than the alternative."

"Because she doesn't want me. She wants Kanako." Knowing that he wouldn't get anywhere further with this, he thanked Chief Arnook for his time and wished him a good day.

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**Author's note: So this was the first chapter. I hope you all liked it, please let me know if you did. If it was somehow lacking, tell me and I will listen. (no spam please!)**

**Btw i'll try and update regularly but you know how sometimes things can go wrong. Not planning on that happening too often. Thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2: Bad news

**So this chappy is quite a bit shorter than the first one, but don't worry tomorrow there will be more. i'm trying to keep posting daily, but it's getting difficult. So it's up to you guys who have to keep me motivated!**

Chapter 2: Bad news

Sitting outside the palace, Kyra was waiting in agony for her best friend Mako. Earlier today he came to her house and dragged her towards the palace, while informing her on the way what he was planning on doing. She was ecstatic to hear that he wanted to stop their betrothal so she would be able to marry her true love Kanako.

Upon hearing that her father had already made arrangements with Mako's father, she pleaded him to change his mind but he wouldn't listen. All the girls are jealous of her because she gets to marry one of the best waterbenders in the north pole, but she could care less if her new betrothed could bend or not… he wasn't Kanako.

While busy fretting over the recent events, she didn't hear Mako coming up behind her. When he came outside, he forgot about Kyra waiting for him. Seeing her now made him nervous again, he had to tell her after all that he had failed to change the council's mind about their betrothal.

"Uh, Kyra?"

Knowing who's voice it was that was speaking to her, she turned around with an expectant look on her face. She didn't need to ask the question that was already formed in her eyes.

Knowing she will be disappointed by his news, he couldn't help looking at his feet when he informed her of their situation.

"I'm sorry Kyra…"

Seeing tears collecting at the corners of her eyes, and that brilliant smile falling off her face, he felt a huge wave of emotions crashing down on him. He couldn't stand seeing her so sad and still try and be strong, so he wrapped his arms around her so she could have a shoulder to cry out on.

Feeling Mako wrap his arms around her, she couldn't help but let her defenses crumble. She started to sob harder and harder in his chest. Mako himself started to feel his eyes water, hearing her cry the way she did. But he had to be strong for Kyra, make sure she would be alright.

After Kyra was cried out, she was exhausted. She told Mako that she should head home or her father would be angry at her. So he offered to walk her home but she told him that she needed to be alone for awhile. So with a sad expression, he let her go home by herself.

Looking at the position of the sun in the sky, he sprinted of to the training grounds for his waterbending lessons with master Pakku.

Arriving at the arena which was surrounded by rows of barrels filled with water, he saw that Pakku's lessons had already begun. He swore silently. Last time he was late, Pakku ordered him to clean up after class… alone. This meant he had to collect all the water that was scattered all over the arena, which could take hours because he wasn't allowed to do it with waterbending. When Pakku saw him he had a scowl on his face and called him forth.

"Late again, Mako. I'm beginning to think you're making a habit out of working on my nerves." Pakku said with as much authority as he was able to… which was a lot.

"I'm sorry sifu Pakku. I was being held up after my meeting with Chief Arnook." Mako said while going into a bowing position for his waterbending teacher.

"Hmmm, yes. Make sure it doesn't happen again. Don't expect any special treatment just because you're my best student." and with that unexpected compliment he walked past a shocked Mako and began where he left off yesterday.

"Today we're going to learn how…" Pakku noticed that Mako was still standing in the same position as before, so he turned around and addressed him with a smirk on his face "Mako, do you not feel like training today?"

Mako, who was still wrapping his mind around the compliment Pakku gave him about his waterbending, heard his sifu talking to him and after a moment processed the information. He quickly bowed and answered: "N…no sifu Pakku, I'm very eager to learn from u today."

"Well then get in line with your fellow students, sunlight is scarce you know" and with that he turned back around and waited for Mako to get in line.

Mako, not wasting any time, quickly took his place among the students and concentrated on Pakku's explanations about a couple of forms they would be learning today. Near the end of the lesson he heard Pakku say something about needing 2 of his students to do a demonstration in front of the most important families in the north pole, in honor of Princess Yue's 16th birthday. For Mako, this would be a great opportunity to change his sifu's opinion about him.

While everyone was hesitating to volunteer because there was a chance they would embarrass themselves and their master, should they screw up, Mako was quick to step forward.

"Master Pakku, it would be an honor if you would choose me to assist you during this presentation." he said while going into a bow.

Pakku, already expecting this from Mako, stepped forward until he was right in front of his student. He signaled for Mako to stand up so he could look the student in the eye (not so simple seeing that he was about 20 centimeters taller than his teacher), and he took his forearm in the customary water tribe way. "Are you willing to work hard on this with me for the following 3 days?"

"I will sifu."

"Then I will see you tomorrow at dawn, Mako"

"Of course, master Pakku."

After hearing Mako's confirmation, Pakku chose one other student and headed for the palace. Mako, feeling content, went back home to mentally prepare for the upcoming task.

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**AN: I also wanted to ask you guys what ships i should write for the remaining characters. You can send me a message but reviewing would make me much happier xd**


	3. Chapter 3: First impressions & farewells

**Here we are again with a new chapter. This time the Gaang will make its appearance, meaning Mako will see Katara for the first time.**

**I also wanted to thank my first reviewer, DragonforceX. You earned yourself a virtual cookie. Oh and I think Maiko doesn't really work too :p**

Chapter 3: First impressions and saying goodbye

The following 3 days was hard work but otherwise uneventful. Mako was so busy that he didn't even realize he hadn't seen Kyra for 4 days. So when his last day of training with Pakku was over, he decided to pay Kyra a visit at her house.

While walking along the canals, he noticed a large furry creature floating its way up to the palace. On top of the beast was a group of people consisting of 3 persons. He recognized the familiar blue colors of 2 people in the saddle, but the third one wore clothing uncommon in the water tribes.

Seeing the young boy clad in yellow and orange colors, he remembered that those were the colors of the air nomads. 'That's impossible, all the air nomads have been wiped out by the fire nation for nearly a 100 years now.' he thought. But when he saw the blue arrows on his head and hands, he quickly realized that the young boy could be the avatar. 'How is he still so young, isn't he supposed to be an old man?'.

Not wanting to question that which was beyond his understanding, he quickly left that train of thought and looked over the boy's companions. First seeing the boy with his hair in a wolf's tail, he realized they came from the southern water tribe, where that style of hair was more common than in the north. He guessed that the boy was around his age, and had a look of wonder on his face.

When Mako followed his gaze, he saw that the boy was staring at Princess Yue. Seeing her, Mako saw the boy's blue eyes widen and instantly there was a dreamy look on his face. 'Is he checking out princess Yue? Ha, good luck buddy' Mako thought while lightly chuckling. He looked a little goofy, but he wouldn't be traveling with the avatar if he wasn't a good man.

And then he saw the girl_._ She was sitting at the front of the creature's saddle , while she floated by the 17 year old waterbender. He guessed she was a bit younger than him but it couldn't be much. Seeing he had to stop near a crossroads in the channels, he thought he'd show off a bit by bending an elaborate bridge made of ice. Now _that_ got her attention. She was staring at him like she never saw waterbending before.

Watching her from the corner of his eyes he walked over the bridge with a confident stride and a smirk on his face. After reaching the end of his self-made bridge, he brought his hands up and made a downwards motion, causing the bridge to turn back into water and leaving no visible trace behind.

Katara was dumbfounded by the blonde-haired waterbender's skills. She watched him smile while he walked away, but she wanted to stop him and ask how he did that. When she finally was pulled out of her reverie, the warrior had already disappeared… but she had a feeling that she would be seeing him again.

After seeing the avatar and his friends, Mako really needed to get going if he wanted to speak with Kyra before the beginning of her healing lessons. By the time he reached her house, the sun was already setting. Then he saw something moving in the alleyway next to Kyra's house. When he moved to inspect more closely, he heard something falling in the snow. When rounding the corner he saw that it was Kyra, wearing her thickest parka and a travelling bag slung over her shoulder.

"Kyra? What are you doing here this late? Shouldn't you be at the healing center?" Mako asked with a confused expression on his face.

Startled by someone's voice, Kyra turned around and saw Mako standing there trying to figure out what she was doing. "oh… euh… nothing Mako, I was… just leaving for my healing lessons." came the unconvincing lie from Kyra.

With a skeptical look, Mako was looking intently at her outfit. 'She looks like she's going camping in the tundra. Why would she... is she running away?' said the alarming voice in his head. "Kyra are you running away?" he asked while he was holding her by the shoulders.

She was debating whether she could tell him the truth. When she still didn't answer after a short pause he went on. "Well?"

She could barely whisper the truth to him. "Yes. Me and Kanako are running away to the Earth kingdom."

"WHAT! You can't do that. Maybe you forgot but there's a war going on! Did Kanako put you up to this 'cuz if he did I…" Kyra cut him off by placing a hand over his mouth, and made a shushing sound.

"No, _he_ wanted me to stay here and marry you. _I_ told him I wanted to run away with him."

After prying off her hand on his mouth, Mako, with a sigh, tried to reason with her, "Kyra…"

"No Mako, I'm going. I love the tribe but these stupid customs have held me back for too long. I know I'm capable of being more than someone's wife. And I think you know that too." was Kyra's response.

"Of course you can be more than just a wife, and I know that. I also know that I can't stop you from going through with it but…" Mako was hesitant to show his feelings, something that has always been hard on him.

"But what, Mako?"

With great reluctance, Mako decided to tell her how he felt about all this. "I'm gonna miss you, you know. You were always there for me when I needed you and if you go, I cannot protect you anymore."

Feeling tears coming up in her eyes, Kyra quickly embraced her good friend with what you could only call a bear hug. "Why did you have to say that! Now I'm gonna tear up for days." She said while laughing and crying at the same time.

Tightening their embrace, Mako wanted to let her know how much he actually loved her. Stroking her dark ebony hair he said, "I want you to know, that I consider you like my little sister. And I will always love you…" feeling the emotions overtaking him, Mako went on "… just make sure to write me regularly and stay out of trouble. 'Cuz if you don't I will not hesitate to come over." he said with a sad laugh.

"I wouldn't have it any other way." was the whisper that answered him.

After a moment of embracing each other, Kyra pulled away. "I have to go. Kanako is waiting for me by the docks." as she went to pick up her bag, she felt her hand being grabbed by Mako. "Can I at least come to wave you off?"

"Yes... you can." was her response while she wiped her eyes with her sleeves.

Their walk to the docks was accompanied by a comfortable silence. Having shown each other their feelings did them both good. Knowing that she would write him, was a big reassurance for Mako.

Arriving at the docks he could see Kanako waving at them. Standing next to the small boat, he knew it was time to say his final goodbye's.

Taking her hand once more, he looked her in the eyes. "Kyra, if you're ever in any trouble… don't hesitate to let me know. I'll be on the first ship towards the earth kingdom."

Looking up into his blue eyes, Kyra couldn't help but think that her intended was actually quite handsome with his rare blonde hair. "You're gonna make some girl very happy someday, you know."

Chuckling with that remark, he grabbed something out of his right pocket. His tone once again becoming serious. "I want you to have this." He pulled out the betrothal necklace he made for her should the wedding go on.

Looking at the carving of waves crashing under a crescent moon, she couldn't help but let her mouth drop. "It's beautiful Mako. Was this supposed to be my betrothal necklace?" after he nodded, she took on a sad expression. "I can't take it Mako, you should give this to the girl you're gonna marry."

"No, I made this for you. Keep it, so you'll never forget me."

Choking back a sob, she grinned. "I could never forget you Mako."

"Same here… Sis."

In an attempt to stop her from crying, he hugged her one last time before they would go their separate ways. "Thank you Mako… for everything."

"Don't worry Kyra, it won't be long before we see each other again." Tightening the hug one last time, he heard Kanako come over to them.

"Honey, we have to get going." He looked at the hugging pair and couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy.

Hearing Kanako's voice, Mako broke the embrace and directed his attention to his _sister_'s boyfriend. "Take care of her Kanako, love and protect her with your life. Because if you don't,…" was his warning.

"Don't worry Mako, I would rather die than let her be harmed in any way." Kanako said while grasping the waterbender by the forearm, sealing his promise with the warrior's handshake. Mako nodded and stood on the pier, watching them sail off in to the distance. All the while waving Kyra goodbye and wishing her a safe journey. He stood there like a statue until they could no longer be seen on the horizon. He wiped away a tear while turning around to prepare for master Pakku's presentation in front of the entire tribe.

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**Reviewing doesn't hurt anyone, so please go ahead xd**

**Ship suggestions are also very appreciated.**


	4. Chapter 4: Meeting the Avatar

**Back again! Hope you'll all enjoy this little chapter. oh and I thought I'd start writing disclaimers, just in case...**

**I do not own Avatar: the last airbender, nor do I profit from this story. I only write for my pleasure and the joy it brings to my readers.**

Chapter 4: Meeting the avatar

Standing slightly behind master Pakku while the feast was just beginning, Mako saw a couple of men carrying a giant sea turtle over to the cooking area. Lowering the giant turtle into the boiling water, Mako could immediately smell the flesh of the creature cooking. Sea turtle always made his mouth water.

"Tonight, we celebrate the arrival of our brother and sister from the southern tribe. And they have brought with them someone very special, someone who we believed disappeared from the world until now…" gesturing to the boy on his left, Arnook went on with a voice that carried throughout the great hall. " The Avatar!"

Seeing the boy from before made him increasingly more nervous, because now he did not only have to perform in front of his entire tribe… but for the avatar as well.

Hearing that Arnook once again began to speak, he tried to concentrate on what was being said. "… here to celebrate my daughter's 16th birthday. Princess Yue is now of marrying age."

After the usual round of applause, Yue took over from her father. "Thank you, Father. May the great ocean and moon spirits watch over us during these troubled times."

Immediately thinking about Kyra, he silently prayed to the spirit of the moon to watch over her and keep her safe.

While saying his prayer, he did not notice that Arnook began speaking again. "Now master Pakku and his students will perform."

While this was being said, Pakku saw the distracted look on Mako's face and gave him a little nudge in the ribs. With an 'ooff', Mako knew that it was time to show their waterbending routine.

Calling forth the water by raising his arms, he knelt down and executed what they had been practicing on for the last 3 days.

While he was bending the spheres of water around them, he noticed the intrigued look of that girl who was friends with the avatar. Locking with her eyes for a moment, he knew that she too was a waterbender. That brilliant blue color was unmistakable to him.

Watching the waterbender bending magnificent forms with the balls of water, Katara noticed something peculiar about him. He had blonde hair and his skin was much lighter than hers, though he still had a little tan. Not to mention his size, he had to be at least 2 heads taller than her. And then Katara noticed his blue eyes when he looked back at her. She gasped, knowing that she was caught. She quickly looked away, but not before seeing him smiling at her.

Seeing the girl look away, he knew she was embarrassed. Again concentrating on his performance, he made sure to do his very best and try to impress the avatar and his companions. When they were finished, he bowed under a thunderous applause from the gathered crowd.

Seeing master Pakku turn to him, he switched his gaze to his master and waited for him to speak. "Good work, Mako. Are you up for a little sparring session tomorrow?"

"Me… spar… with u? Sifu… I would be honored." Mako was dumbfounded that his master wanted to spar with him and after a quick bow and a nod from Pakku, the elder went to get his well-earned rest.

Tomorrow Mako gets to battle with his master, an honor only reserved for the master's best student. He was so happy, he just **had** to do a happy dance. Making sure no one would see it , he stood behind a pillar and did his usual dance when he was feeling like this. But when he turned around, he saw the avatar looking at him with an amused expression on his face.

Embarrassed of being caught, by none other than the avatar himself, he stumbled into an upright position and bowed to the boy. "Oh… avatar… uh… don't mind me, I was just…", Mako was cut off by Aang "Hi I'm Aang, you got some nice moves there. Aren't you one of master Pakku's students?" Recognition dawned on the young avatar's face when he remembered the waterbending student with blonde hair and lighter complexion than his fellow tribesmen.

"Thank you, avatar Aang. My name is Mako, and yes I'm one of master Pakku's students" was his response.

"Please Mako, just call me Aang. I'm still not used to people calling me avatar." he said with a friendly smile. "You were great by the way. I was wondering if you could show me some of those waterbending moves?"

Being surprised by the avatar's request, he quickly replied, "Oh no, I couldn't. You should ask master Pakku, I think he would be glad to accept you as his student. But I have to warn you though, he can be quite strict. Believe me… I know." Mako said, while chuckling with that last bit.

"Ah… than do you know where master Pakku is, so I can ask him?"

"Of course, he went off to talk with Chief Arnook. I think he's standing over there…" pointing in the direction he saw Pakku last.

"Thanks Mako, maybe I'll see you next lesson?" Aang said with an honest smile on his face.

"It would be my pleasure, av… I mean, Aang." bowing to the boy.

After bowing in return to the young waterbender, Aang quickly made his way over to master Pakku. Looking at the young avatar's back, Mako wondered if this boy was up to the task of being the last hope to save this world. Not wanting to think like that, Mako decided that he should turn in and rest to be ready for his sparring match with the best waterbender in the north.

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**AN: I still need suggestions on what ships you want me to write. Ty luko is leading for now. If you like this pairing, review. If you don't, review as well. Thanks for reading!**


	5. Chapter 5: Fighting the master

**The story's picking up, hope you guys liked it this far. Nothing else to say so... start reading!**

Chapter 5: Fighting the master

Arriving early at the training grounds the following morning, he saw that he and master Pakku were the only ones present. Seeing that practice started at 10 am, Mako set out to do a few exercises to warm up. Seeing his sifu do the same, he heard someone yell from across the training grounds.

"Hey master Pakku!" the yell came from Aang, who was seemingly excited to begin his waterbending lessons. Hearing master Pakku muttering something about "… I'm not concentrating or anything.", Mako had to suppress his laughter, so that the elder wouldn't hear it.

He was too far off to hear the rest of the conversation, but he noticed that he brought that girl from last night with him. Knowing what the avatar was going to ask, he braced himself for the worst. Watching the girl defend herself, made him realize how much she reminded him of Kyra. She was as stubborn as her and showed to have the same passion.

He finally got to catch something she said, "I don't wanna heal , I wanna fight!". 'Exactly what Kyra said.' he thought while smiling at the memory. As predicted, the discussion became heated, with the avatar turning his back on Pakku, and the older man yelling. "Well then have fun teaching yourself, I'm sure you'll do a great job."

Watching the girl running after the avatar, he saw them talking and after a short conversation, the girl walked away. Reluctantly, Aang turned around and immediately a stream of water sent him flying across the training grounds. Falling a few meters from his feet, Mako went over and helped the boy up. "Thanks for helping me up, I didn't expect…" seeing a familiar face helping him up, he immediately became excited again, "Mako! Did you see how rude Pakku was to Katara?"

'So Katara is her name…' Mako thought. "Yeah, I thought you knew that our tribe doesn't allow women to learn waterbending." seeing the boy's expression darken visibly, he knew that that wasn't the answer he was looking for.

"No… I didn't know." he said with a sad expression etched on his childlike features.

"Well, just between you and me… I think it's stupid too." Mako said, trying to brighten the avatar's mood. Watching Aang with a sad smile on his face, the blonde-haired waterbender went on. "Why don't we start training so you can get your mind off of things.". Seeing the boy nod, he gestured for Aang to take the lead.

During their training, Mako was amazed at the speed Aang was learning. It took the avatar only 2 to 3 tries to master the technique. There were forms Mako had to practice on for days, but the avatar made them his own in only a couple of minutes. To top it all off, he never lost that smile on his face.

Nearing the end of the days lesson, Mako wondered when he was to battle his master. Just when he was about to ask, Pakku spoke. "Mako , can you come forward please."

Stepping forward to meet the elder, Mako felt a feeling of nervousness creep in. "Yes, master Pakku?"

Seeing the nervousness in his student's eyes, he couldn't help but to let a small smile form on his wrinkly face. "Are you ready to spar with an old master?"

"Well I would never call you old, sifu. My choice of words would be 'aged'." was the young man's answer.

Hearing Pakku laugh for the first time since… ever, Mako wondered why he didn't laugh more often. "I think I'll take that as a yes." the old man said while still smiling.

Standing 20 or so meters from each other, Mako began to feel confident again. He figured he had his height, strength and youth as an advantage on the older man.

That confident feeling quickly faded, when Pakku called forth a massive ball of water from the surrounding basins. Bracing himself for the attack, he too called forth a good amount of water. After seeing that Pakku threw the sphere at him, he moved his arms so that the water took on a V-shape with him standing right behind it. Slicing the ball of water in two, the halves fell to the ground with a big splash. Bending his wall so that there were icicles shooting directly at his master, Mako thought he had his master taken off guard. That was before he saw him melting the icy projectiles with a flick of his hand.

Trying a different approach, Mako raised his hands above his head, and while bringing them slowly down he blew out a puff of air. Having the arena filled with a thick fog, Mako tried to get closer to the old waterbender. Trying to trick his master, Mako created a water whip behind Pakku's back. Just when he wanted to hit the man in the back of the head, he felt a cold substance climb up his leg. "You should know better than to try and trick me, Mako." came Paku's voice from his right side.

'How in Tui's name did he get there so fast?' was the thought ringing in his head. Trying to concentrate on his fighting, Mako took the water from his failed surprise attack, and used it to cut the watery cord strapped to his leg. Knowing that the mist wouldn't do him any good, he used it to surround Pakku in a watery circle and freeze it so he would be trapped. Pakku smirked and bend the icy prison away from him with a few flowing arm movements. Mako knew it would be difficult to win this without immobilizing him somehow.

Pakku, being quite impressed with his students progress, knew he had to cut this fight short or his opponent would get too confident in his future endeavors. Bending a wave underneath him, Pakku took off at an incredible speed. Not expecting this from the old master, Mako swiftly bend a hole underneath his feet so he would be safe from Pakku's attack. Feeling that the coast was clear, he came back up but Pakku was nowhere to be seen. Feeling nervous, Mako started to turn and twist, making sure he could not be blindsided by another attack.

What he didn't expect was for Pakku to be underneath him, using the same technique his student used just moments ago. Getting an uneasy feeling in his gut, Mako thought it would be best for him to be on the high ground in case Pakku had a trick up his sleeve. Bending a large platform, so he had enough space to move in, he closed his eyes and tried to feel the attack coming… just like his sifu taught him. Feeling the ground rumbling, Mako knew that his master was underneath him.

Trying to evade his attack, he quickly bend a board made of ice so he could escape the impending attack. But what he didn't know was that Pakku was quicker than he thought, so by the time he took off, Pakku was already hot on his tail. Being one step ahead, Pakku bend a small pillar in front of his ice-board, making Mako fall flat on his face in a pile of snow. Next the master bend the snow into an ice cube so he was stuck with his arms and head in a giant block of ice.

Knowing the fight was over, Mako stopped struggling and tried to bow to his master while still having his arms and head stuck in the giant ice block. Accepting Mako's defeat, Pakku made a hand gesture, causing the ice to melt back into water.

"Very good, Mako. Not many students are able to last longer than a minute on their first try against their teachers." Pakku said, while bowing in respect to his student.

Mako, grinning with that compliment, answered: "Thank you, sifu Pakku. It was an honor fighting against you."

Forgetting formalities for a minute, Pakku took Mako's arm and gestured for him to come closer. When Mako was close enough for Pakku so no one would hear, he whispered: "Bending that ice-board was quite ingenius, maybe you should try and perfect it so I won't knock you down next time."

Chuckling with Pakku's comment, Mako answered in the same whisper as his master. "Don't worry sifu, I will practice hard. Next time you won't beat me so easily."

Bidding his students farewell, Pakku went back to his house to rest from the sparring session. Having to take off as well, Mako quickly went over to the avatar to compliment him on his performance during his first lesson with Pakku. But when he was approaching the young boy, he saw that he was standing in a circle full of older children. Analyzing the situation, he walked closer until he could hear what was being said.

"So you dare come back after a 100 years and expect us to give you a warm welcome?" asked the largest of the group.

Aang didn't know what to say, "uh… I'm sorry?" came the 12 year old's hesitant response.

This seemed to anger the leader even more. "Oh I'll give you something to be sorry about." raising his fist to strike the avatar, Mako knew he had to step in. He bend a wall in front of the avatar's face so that the boys fist slammed into the ice rather than Aang's head. Hearing the boy's pained cry, Mako took the opportunity to separate the group from Aang.

Standing in front of the avatar, Mako spoke to the group. "How dare you speak like that to the world's last hope. We should be grateful he wants to help us end this war once and for all."

Having their leader incapacitated for awhile, another boy took charge. "He left us with the wolves at our doorstep, we should hand him over to the Fire nation, so they will leave us alone."

Hearing these treacherous words from his fellow tribesmen made him feel sick. "Is that how you all feel?" When the group nodded in confirmation, his anger rose to a new level. "Well if anyone wants to hand him over, they will have to go through me first."

Having seen the sparring session between him and Pakku, the group was not very keen on fighting the top student of the greatest waterbender in the north pole.

"Well? None of you will fight me? Then leave Aang alone or you will have to deal with me." seeing their surprised faces, he wanted to make them cower away in fear. So with as much venom as he could muster in one word, he said "Understood?"

Watching them scatter like frightened animals made him bring a smile to his face. Turning around he saw the avatar staring at him. "I apologize for my fellow tribesmen, most of us are happy you are back among us." When he didn't hear a response from the boy, he began to get worried. "Aang, are you alright?"

"That was amazing! I never had someone defend me like that!" he said in an excited voice.

"No problem Aang, they shouldn't have spoken to you like that."

"You've got to meet my friends!" there was that excitement again.

"I would love to Aang, but I have to be somewhere. Maybe another time?"

"Off course Mako. Tomorrow maybe?" was the avatar's hopeful question.

"Yeah, tomorrow is good for me. But I really have to get going now, I'll see you later 'kay?" And with that he left the Avatar and headed home to help his father cut up the fish the tribe caught this morning.

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**AN: I know the story is progressing rather slow, but I hate stories that are moving too fast. I first wanted Mako and Katara to have a good foundation to build their relationship on. **

**Tell me what you think!**


	6. Chapter 6: Male bonding

**I don't really feel like keeping you guy's from reading the story so...**

Chapter 6: Male bonding

Leaving for warrior training the next day, Mako hoped his weapons master wouldn't notice that he neglected his training for an entire week. Being busy working on his waterbending, he simply was too tired to train with his axe as well.

Coming up to the palace's front courtyard, which was also used as a warrior training ground, Mako saw there was a lot of commotion coming from the palace's entrance. Wanting to know what all the fuss was about, he moved in closer and saw Pakku and that girl, 'what was her name again? Tara… KAtara, that's it!'. So he saw Pakku and Katara argue about something, probably about her wanting to learn waterbending, when Pakku nonchalantly walked away.

Glancing over the crowd for a familiar face, he saw the avatar and that boy who came with him to the north pole. Seeing the expression on their faces, he knew that they were concerned for their friend. Going over to them to gather some information on the situation, he saw Katara bending a water whip that smacked Pakku right in the back of his head.

"Hey Aang, do you know what's going on here?" he asked, surprised to see the girl provoke an attack from the old master.

Turning around to answer the question that was directed at him, "Oh hey Mako. Katara just challenged Pakku to a duel. I just hope he won't be too hard on her."

'If she's anything like Kyra, I wouldn't worry about her.' Mako thought. "Well… I've never seen master Pakku hold back for _anyone_." he said in a knowing voice.

Watching the fight with interest, he assessed the moves of the female waterbender. She could hold herself quite well against Pakku, not an easy feat to say the least.

"She's very good…" seeing Katara fall down and having some trouble standing up, Mako knew the fight was over. The master ended the fight by encasing her in a jail of icy pikes, effectively restricting her of any arm movements. "…very good indeed."

Trying to hear the conversation that followed, Mako strained his ears.

"This is my necklace." Pakku said with a look of wonder on his face.

"No it's not, it's mine. Give it back!" the girl yelled from where she was trapped.

Looking as if his mind was in a different place, Pakku elaborated. "I made this sixty years ago for the love of my live… for Kanna."

'No way! Kyra's famous great-aunt was to marry Pakku? So she left to get away from the marriage." Mako connected the dots quite quickly and was impressed with himself.

As if voicing his thoughts, Katara said "My gran-gran was supposed to marry _you_?"

"I carved this necklace for your grandmother when we got engaged. I thought we would have a long, happy life together… I loved her." He said we a sad expression when he recalled the memory.

Shifting her stance to a less hostile one, she finished the old man's story. "But she didn't love you, did she? It was an arranged marriage. Gran-Gran wouldn't let your tribe's stupid customs rule her life, that's why she left. It must have taken a lot of courage."

Princess Yue, who was standing next to the southern tribe warrior, suddenly ran off crying. Seeing the avatar tell something to his friend, the older boy went after her. Not knowing what that was about, he decided that he should finally start with his warrior training.

Running a little late, he saw there was a new figure sharpening his boomerang at the corner of the training grounds. Remembering him as the avatar's male friend, he figured he should go over there and introduce himself.

Walking up to him, he saw an angry frown on his face. "You're one of the avatar's friends, right? Katara's brother? I'm Mako."

Hearing his sister's name, Sokka looked up to see a tall, well built older boy standing there with one arm stretched out to him. Taking Mako's arm, he wondered how he knew his sister's name. "Yeah, I'm Sokka. I saw you before, do you know my sister?"

Seeing the protective glint in his eyes, Mako knew he had to choose his next words carefully. "I haven't spoken to her yet, but she made quite an impression fighting master Pakku."

"Yeah, she does that…" Sokka said not fully focusing on the conversation.

Seeing this, Mako thought he knew why he would be so distracted. "So… you and Princess Yue seem to be pretty close." he said, trying to be casual about it.

"What? How would you…" Paranoid that soon the whole tribe would know, Sokka quickly wanted to know who this guy was working for. "Are you one of Hahn's friends?" he asked nervously.

Wanting to reassure the younger boy, he told him what his deal was. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. Hahn is an idiot with an ego as big as the Earth Kingdom, tightening our bonds with our sister tribe would be much more convenient than marrying her off to that _warrior_." sarcasm surrounding that last word.

Not used to thinking politically, Sokka knew he liked this guy. 'What did he say his name was?...Mako, I think.' Needing a short pause to recall Mako's name, he finally spoke. "Thanks, Mako. At least _someone_ has my back on this."

Wanting to distract Sokka, he changed the subject. "So are you gonna train with us today?"

"Yeah, I thought I'd give it a go. What weapon are you mastering?" Sokka asked

"I like the axe, it's got a nice swing to it. I can see you like using a boomerang and the club." he noticed the weapons while he was walking up to him earlier.

"Yeah, but what I would like to really master is the sword."

"Ah, not many warriors choose the sword. I think they underestimate it in the north pole. You need a lot of skill to completely master that weapon." Mako said, curious about Sokka's preference.

"One day I'll find a master who wants to teach me…" Sokka said with hope-filled eyes.

"Until that time, maybe you want to spar with me? I'd like to see how warriors fight in the south."

"Yeah sure, but I have to warn you. I'm the best fighter in my entire tribe." Sokka said trying to sound convincing.

Judging by the way he went into his first stance, Mako could see that he still was at beginner level. "I'll take your word on it." he said chuckling lightly.

Offended by his short laugh, Sokka immediately attacked Mako. Already predicting this, Mako simply sidestepped, took the arm holding the weapon, and disarmed Sokka while throwing him over his hip.

"First rule in a fight. Clear your mind of any thoughts. When you can't concentrate, you can't react. Same thing goes for anger, it can really mess up your fighting."

Surprised he was beaten so easily, Sokka took Mako's advice at heart and kept practicing with him for the rest of the day.

Actually meeting someone who was nice to him and didn't look down on him, being a peasant from the south, Sokka invited Mako to come over to their house and talk some more about weapons and fighting styles.

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**AN: Still waiting for those reviews, I'd actually like more than one. Go figure xd**


	7. Chapter 7: Waterbenders meet

**I'm not very happy with this chapter, but I didn't feel like completely rewriting it. I'll do better next time, I promise!**

Chapter 7: Waterbenders meet

Wondering what was taking her brother so long to get home, her mind was going over all the reasons why he would be late. Mostly getting worst-case-scenario's, she wanted to think positive and not listen to that little voice in the back of her mind.

Staring out the window waiting for her brother, Katara was so happy that Pakku accepted her request to take her in as a student. 'He must have been impressed because of my waterbending.' she thought.

Finally seeing her brother rounding the corner, she saw he was talking to someone who was walking next to him. The first thing she recognized about the person was that he had wavy blonde hair. Knowing that it was that older boy who caught her staring at him, Katara's face instantly heated up and began turning red. Not wanting the boy to see her face so flushed, she quickly bend a stream of cool water onto her face so her temperature would drop a bit.

When she was pleased with her appearance, Katara decided to meet Sokka and his friend at the doorstep.

Coming up to the house, Sokka asked Mako inside when suddenly the door swung open with Katara standing in the doorway.

"Where were you?" she asked, almost yelling.

"I told you this morning I would be training today." Sokka said calmly, knowing his sister would react this way.

"The sun has nearly set, Sokka! Nobody trains _that_ long!" she said, not lowering her volume.

Sokka was beginning to frown when he said, "Katara, I really am in no mood to fight about this." was his warning.

Standing idly at the sidelines, Mako knew he had to intervene or it would get ugly. Watching them ripping each other to pieces wouldn't be a pretty sight, especially for Sokka. Wanting to try something, Mako loudly cleared his throat.

"Miss Katara, Sokka's tardiness was completely my fault and u shouldn't blame him for something I did ." Mako interrupted the siblings and saw Katara looking at him with a 'are you making fun of me?' face. Sokka on the other hand, recovering quite fast from his confusion, was grinning happily that his new friend had taken the blame.

Mako wanted to top it off. So he took her hand and bowed down to it, placing a feather light kiss on her knuckle.

Katara began to turn as red as a beet when the young man in front of her was kissing her hand. She wanted to say something but realized her throat closed up, with nothing coming out of her mouth as a result.

When Sokka's smirk fell off of his face, Mako had to suppress a little laugh. Thinking that changing the subject would be best, Mako delicately let go of her hand and asked Sokka if he could come in 'cuz it was freezing'.

Seeing Katara's hand still floating in the air, Sokka tried to process what just happened when he heard Mako's request. Naturally, Sokka let him enter and gave a tour of the place, all the while leaving Katara standing at the front door.

When they went to the living room, Katara was already seated on the couch when Sokka threw himself on the other end of it. Gesturing for him to sit down in the middle, Sokka stood up and said something about showing him his weapons collection.

When Sokka left, Katara and Mako were sitting right next to each other in an awkward silence. Wanting to start a conversation with her, Mako decided he should introduce himself properly.

"So… I'm Mako, nice to finally meet you." he said in a somewhat nervous voice while holding out his hand.

"Yeah, you too. My name's Katara by the way." came the automatic response. "Uh… are you gonna kiss my hand again?" she asked while blushing, remembering what had happened just moments ago.

"Oh… n..no, I did that to tease your brother." Mako explained, trying to hide the embarrassment in his voice.

For some reason not being pleased with that answer, Katara took his hand and shook it.

Mako wanted to talk about something else when he saw Katara frown when she took his hand.

" oh by the way, you did great against master Pakku today. I have to say, not many people would last that long against him." Mako rapidly said after coming up with the topic.

"Thanks, but I didn't win. I don't think he'll ever want to teach me." Katara said in a sad voice.

"Oh I wouldn't be too sure about that. You won his respect with that fight, he'll come around eventually." Mako said, trying to be optimistic.

"You really think so?" she asked, wanting to believe what the waterbender was telling her.

"Of course, at first he didn't like me too. I defended my best friend when she wanted to learn waterbending… and he held a grudge until now. But I worked hard to get back on his good side, and now I think he's starting to like me."Mako explained, briefly summing up the situation with master Pakku.

Katara's eyes went wide when he said 'she'. 'Does that mean he actually _wanted_ a woman to be trained in waterbending?'

"Can I ask you something Mako?" Katara asked in a very inquisitive voice.

"Ask me anything." he said not noticing the underlying tone.

"What do you think of me?"

Mako's mind went blank. 'What kind of question is that? Say something already! C'mon talk!' his mind was screaming at him repeatedly but nothing came out. He just sat there with a gaping hole where his mouth should be.

"Uh… uh…I think… you're…beautiful." He answered honestly.

Katara was surely **not** expecting _that._ Now it was _her_ mind that couldn't think clearly for a moment. "Oh, that… wasn't exactly what I meant. I thought you would look at me as something less than a man, not an equal." trying to suppress a blush, she awkwardly explained to the boy next to her what she meant.

'Stupid, stupid, stupid, why did I have to say _that_? She obviously thinks I'm some kind of freak now!' he kept berating himself in his mind while she was talking. About a second later, he processed what she had said and quickly got his mind back in order.

"What? Oh no, I know what women are capable of doing. Kyra, has shown me first hand." reliving old memories when he mentioned Kyra.

Seeing the unfocused look in his eyes, Katara wondered if something happened to this Kyra. "Good, because the majority of men have been quite rude to me. Just this morning there was a guy I didn't even know, who wanted me to wash his clothes." Katara said, balling her fists at the thought of a stranger ordering her around like some slave.

Outright laughing after she told him, Mako knew immediately who she was talking about. "Let me guess, he introduced himself as Hahn, right?" still chuckling when he asked her.

"Yes, how did you know?" confused that he instantly knew the boy's name.

"Well he once asked Kyra the same thing." Starting to lightly laugh again because of the memory.

'That's the second time he mentioned this Kyra.' she thought while feeling a little jealous for some unknown reason. Being a little annoyed because of the feeling, Katara decided to ask him what was up with that. "Is Kyra your girlfriend or something?" she practically snapped at him.

Mako was stunned for a second by the tone of her voice, but soon recovered and told her briefly of his situation with Kyra. "No… I was supposed to marry her." looking at his feet, he didn't want to think about his near-marriage.

"You… you're… betrothed?" she asked, fearfully awaiting the answer.

"No, not anymore. She was in love with someone else. She ran off a couple of days ago." Mako looked back up at her and saw a concerned expression on Katara's face. "But it's okay. I'm more sad that I can't check up on her from time to time, she's like my little sister." reliving the moment on the pier brought a small but sad smile on his features.

Katara didn't like seeing the older boy in front of her so depressed, so she wanted to do something to comfort him. She shuffled closer to Mako and put her left hand on his back. While she rubbed his back up and down, Mako felt her breathing close to his ear.

"It's okay if you're sad that she left, you don't need to keep it bottled up." Katara said in a comforting whisper.

Not being able to speak, Mako turned towards Katara and slung his arms around her form. "She was everything I had. Now she's gone and I don't know what to do." He was trying to stay calm, but the his emotions were too intense.

Katara immediately reacted when she felt his arms around hers in a hug. When she heard what he said, she knew she had to help one way or the other. "Don't worry, you'll figure something out." She tried to reassure him that everything would be alright, when she suddenly heard something clattering to the ground.

"What are you doing to my sister!" Sokka came back into the living room when he found his weapons collection. He was gone for 5 minutes and his new friend already had his arms around his sister.

Katara knew that Sokka jumped to conclusions, so she tried to explain the situation they were in. Before she even had the chance, Mako turned around and apologized to Sokka.

Sokka saw the tear marks that were on Mako's face, so he knew he just made a mistake. "Why are you crying Mako?" he said in a soft voice, abandoning his hostile demeanor.

Mako was cursing in his mind, knowing that he was caught during a moment of weakness. "I… I have to go" he said, wanting to get out of there as fast as humanly possible.

Katara didn't want to leave Mako like this, she tried to stop him by calling out to him. "Mako, wait!"

"I'll see you tomorrow morning at the waterbending arena, Katara." Mako ignored her, wanting to be alone for awhile. Though he hoped that she would be at practice tomorrow.

Do to Katara's personality, she didn't like leaving someone who needed her. But she realized he needed space, so she let him be for a while. She heard him about the waterbending lessons though, but she doubted Pakku would welcome her. 'Trust him Katara.' the voice in her head kept repeating.

"I'll be there." she mumbled while watching Mako stumbling of in the thick snow.

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**AN: Still the same message here: R&R guys!**


	8. Chapter 8: The Fire nation attacks

**I gotta write faster! I only have 1 chapter in reserve and I'm so busy I can't write anymore. Updates probably won't be daily anymore. Sorry! Hope you still enjoy this chapter.**

Chapter 8:

Katara kept her promise and was at the arena at dawn, she barely made it but she was there at least. Mako heard master Pakku explain that at the end of the lesson, everyone would participate in at least 1 sparring match with Katara. Mako knew that Pakku was impressed with her fighting, but to let her fight everyone in a row? It could be a little too much for Katara.

During class, Mako saw Katara improving at a rate that could match the avatar's. She picked up on things so quickly it was kind of frightening. When class was almost over, Pakku announced that it was sparring time.

Mako quickly realized that he was mistaken in Katara's abilities, because she made quick work out of every opponent that crossed her path. At the moment she was battling a nervous Sangook, who was known to be very jumpy. Hesitant in his attack, the pupil made a simple ice ball and threw it at Katara.

Shaking his head, Mako knew that that wouldn't cut it. Katara confirmed his thought by taking over the ball and turning it back to her opponent, freezing him in place in a wall of ice.

"Nice try pupil Sangook. A couple of more years, and you'll be ready to fight a sea sponge." Pakku commented on Sangook's attempt with a great deal of sarcasm.

"Okay Mako, you're up." Pakku informed him it was his turn to fight the still undefeated Katara.

While Pakku walked past him, he whispered something Mako could barely catch. "I expect more from you."

Mako was happy his teacher believed in him, so he stepped up to stand across from a still smirking waterbender. "Don't expect me to go easy on you!" he yelled from across the courtyard, not thinking he would need to after having seen what Katara could do.

"Oh don't worry about poor old me! I'll be just fine!" she yelled right back, still having that smirk on her face.

And so the battle commenced. Katara started off with a medium sized wave of water, aiming for Mako's body. He countered effectively, parting the wave by holding his hands in a V-shape. Following up with an attack of his own, Mako created a type of snowstorm that was trapping Katara within its center.

Katara knew that her only way out was through a hole in the ice, so she bend one and let herself fall in. When she heard the tornado stop, she emerged nearly 2 meters from Mako's current position. She knew this was too close a distance for effectively executing complicated waterbending moves, so she bend herself a water wip.

Upon seeing her weapon, he in turn bend himself some razor sharp daggers made of ice. They charged at each other with a great deal of ferocity, both not wanting to relent. Katara was at a disadvantage using her water whip, because Mako's daggers would slice it right before she could hit him. Seeing this as an opportunity, Mako froze her feet in place and ran straight for her.

Not being completely immobilized, Katara made some arm movements throwing obstacles Mako's way. Hitting him in his left leg, Mako couldn't keep his balance and collided with Katara. He fell on top of her and managed to grab hold of her hands on the way down. Using his weight to pin her down, he knew she wasn't going anywhere. " Give up?" he asked in a cocky voice.

Blushing because he was sitting on top of her, she stubbornly said "Never."

They were both smiling at each other when Mako noticed that there was black snow falling around them. Katara saw his frown and was getting worried. "What's wrong, Mako?" She used his lack of concentration by putting her legs around his waist and flipping the two of them over so she was straddling him. "I win." she informed him with a smile.

He was surprised that she would play dirty by using his distraction to gain the upper hand. "I guess you did." saying it with a smile displayed on his face.

"Oh no, soot!" Katara instantly recognized the black snow that was falling around them. She quickly got off of Mako and helped him up while telling him what the black snow meant.

She turned to master Pakku who was looking at the soot intently. Running up to him, he already knew. "The Fire nation is heading this way! All of you, come with me to the palace!" He left no room for discussion, so everybody did what he was told.

Mako threw a concerned look at Katara, who returned it with equal measure.

Katara, Mako and Aang met up with Sokka at the palace's great hall, when Arnook was ready to begin addressing his warriors.

When Mako heard that the Fire nation launched a full scale attack on his tribe, he believed that they had to be mistaken. The Fire nation never even dared to attack the tribe once during this 100-year war, and now they plan to annihilate them in one strike. 'They used the same tactic with the air nomads. But without Sozin's comet, they now rely on sheer numbers.' Mako understood what the Fire nation was trying to do, and he would use every muscle in his body to prevent them from succeeding.

At one point during his speech, Arnook asked his warriors if they where up to the task of going on a very dangerous mission.

He saw Sokka standing up first, while saying in a very determined voice "Count me in."

"Sokka…" Katara didn't understand why Sokka would volunteer for such a mission.

Mako knew he had a duty to his tribe, so he too stood up. "I'll come with you brother." Mako said while taking Sokka's forearm.

Sokka nodded and they walked up to Arnook to receive the chief's blessing.

Mako was looking back at Katara, and saw a pained expression on her face. 'She's probably sad for her brother.' he thought, not knowing the sadness was dedicated to him as well.

When Sokka and Mako entered the armory, he saw Hahn standing there in a ridiculous Fire nation uniform. Sokka's laugh was infectious and Mako let a small laugh escape his mouth. Hahn heard the laughs and asked the boys what their problem was. Sokka explained to Hahn and the chief all he knew about the fire nation and their commanding officer.

Mako instantly predicted trouble when Sokka saw Hahn. It was only a matter of time before he figured out that the guy leading this mission would be marrying Princess Yue. "Princess Yue is marrying _**you**_?" Sokka almost shouted, while his mouth fell open.

'Here we go…' said the sighing voice in Mako's mind.

Sokka managed to stay surprisingly calm. He even managed to congratulate him. Mako put his hand on his shoulder, so Sokka would know he understood his pain.

A few hours later, all the warriors were preparing their weapons so they could get going. Suddenly Chief Arnook walked in and called Mako over. He quickly found his way to Arnook, when he started to speak in a serious tone.

"I'm proud that you volunteered for this mission, Mako. There are a few problems though." Mako didn't like where this conversation was going…

"You can't come with us on this mission." Arnook said in a somewhat disappointed voice.

"What? Why not?" he squealed rather femininely for a man his size.

"We only have a few suits of armor, and you're too tall. You would stand out too much." Arnook explained.

"No… please Chief Arnook, u _have_ to let me go!" Mako pleaded with his chief.

"I have a more important task for you…" Arnook was cut off by Sokka's battle shout. Quickly turning around, Mako saw Sokka rolling on the floor fighting with Hahn. 'Took him longer than I expected.' Mako thought while smiling.

Arnook broke the two up and informed Sokka that he was off the mission. Smile falling of his face, Mako knew Sokka would take that one hard.

After the warriors departed for their mission, Arnook came over to the boys. He saw the huge frown on Sokka's face, so he wanted to tell him why exactly he wasn't going to the Fire nation flagship.

"Sokka… I took you of the mission for selfish reasons. I have a special task in mind for you."

"What you want me to scrub the barracks?" He stopped sharpening his boomerang to turn around, and answer the chief with sarcasm.

Arnook was unfazed by Sokka's sarcastic reply and elaborated. "I want you to guard my daughter, Princess Yue."

Sokka immediately straightened up with eyes as wide as saucers. "Sure… that.. shouldn't be too hard."

Arnook nodded and turned to Mako. "And I want you to make sure the avatar is safe. I don't trust anyone more with this task than you, seeing you're already friends with him." Arnook put his right hand on Mako's shoulder while he was speaking to him.

"Of course, Chief" Mako returned Arnook's look with fierce determination.

"You should get going, it's nearly sunrise. The Fire nation will attack soon." Arnook needed to get his forces ready to defend his tribe. He left the armory in a hurried pace.

When Mako and Sokka left to do their duty, they saw Yue rounding the corner shouting for help. Sokka immediately met her halfway and asked what was wrong. Yue told them that a firebender was at the spirit oasis fighting with Katara over Aang.

"We need to get over there now!" Mako didn't want to lose any time and led the group to the oasis. While running through the snow, they heard Fire nation ships ramming the outer wall. The 3 of them heard the cries of the soldiers while they were pouring into the northern tribe.

Mako heard that the fight wasn't far off and he wanted to get his princess out of there, so he ordered Sokka to go to that furry creature and fly off to the oasis while he held the Fire nation soldiers off.

"I will meet you there! Now go and help Katara and Aang!", he shouted when they hesitated to leave him behind.

Sokka looked back at Mako and nodded to the waterbender. Taking Yue's hand, he led her off towards Appa.

Mako saw that the Princess was in good hands, so he turned around and removed his outer parka. He was ready to do his duty and protect his tribe.

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**AN: Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think.**


	9. Chapter 9: Siege of the North

**This is my longest chapter yet, so there could be a few mistakes in them. Read and let me know if I made any!**

Chapter 9: Siege of the North

Mako stood alone in an open area, when he heard the shouts of Fire nation soldiers. They came bursting through the wall opposite to him. When they saw the lone waterbender, they formed a line and prepared to attack.

When the soldiers lined up, Mako saw that there were 5 soldiers with spears and 2 that stood in the back. He believed he could take the non-benders, the 2 in the back would be the real problem.

Mako had the advantage, being surrounded by water, so he decided to attack first and take a few guys out. First bending a couple of ice balls, he knocked 2 soldiers out cold. The remaining 3 reacted quickly and charged for him. Knowing they would had too much momentum to come to a full stop, he lifted himself up by creating a pillar. As predicted, the soldiers slammed into the pillar and fell in a heap on top of each other.

It was quite a comical sight, and Mako had a hard time not to laugh at the soldiers. While he was distracted, he felt a heat coming towards him. He turned his head towards the 2 soldiers in the back, and saw they had bend a stream of fire towards his body. Mako swiftly jumped off of the pillar, and saw that it instantly melted when the fire impacted.

When Mako stood on even ground with the 2 firebenders, he had to swallow the lump in his throat. He never fought someone of the other elements before, not to mention 2 at the same time.

The firebenders moved their arms in circles and fire began to come alive in their hands. Mako saw the massive fireball that was thrown at him and tried to deflect it with a ball of water. The two elements met, but the fire was stronger and overpowered the water. Mako tried to evade the attack, but he was a fraction too late and got struck in his left shoulder.

Gripping his shoulder in agony, Mako tried to stand up and move into a defensive stance. Now that he was restricted to only one arm, his chances of survival were next to none. One firebender signaled the other to finish the job, so he stepped forward and raised his fist to blast fire at the injured waterbender.

In a flash, the firebender flew across the area and slammed into a wall of ice. Mako looked around confused and saw Pakku standing on his far left. "Get out of here Mako! Go to the oasis and protect the avatar!" Pakku shouted at him while fighting the remaining firebender.

Mako didn't want to leave his master behind and tried to react, "But master…." he was immediately cut off by Pakku.

"Now Mako!" Pakku didn't have the time to argue with him, there were soldiers coming in from everywhere.

Mako didn't like it but he left his master and went to the oasis as fast as he could with his injured shoulder.

When he arrived at the door to the oasis, he saw Sokka and Yue fly over on that furry beast. Quickly stepping through the door, he panicked when he saw the unmoving body of Katara lying at the pond with the koi fish. He sprinted for her body and immediately felt if she was still alive. Luckily she had a strong pulse and not long after she woke up with her eyes wide.

"Aang!" she gasped the boys name the moment she opened her eyes.

"Shh, don't move too fast just yet. You were knocked out cold. What happened, Katara?" he already guessed that the firebender defeated her and took Aang away.

Her vision focused when she heard her name, and saw that Mako was holding her in his arms. Her face was turning red when she realized she was in the arms of a man. Then she remembered why she was lying there. "Zuko took Aang!" she sat up in a flash and was looking around to see if he really was gone.

"Who's Zuko?" Mako asked, not knowing who she was talking about.

"He's the banished Prince of the Fire nation and wants to capture Aang so he can regain his honor…". Katara noticed the wound on his shoulder when she turned around to better explain who their enemy was. "…you're bleeding!"

"Oh it's nothing, it looks worse than it feels." Mako lied, not wanting to further worry the girl.

Katara knew that he was lying, so she smacked him on the back of the head and scoffed. "I know you're lying, I'm not Sokka. Now let me take a look." She left no room for discussion and Mako thought he better do what she said.

He walked up to her and saw the concern in her eyes. She ordered him to take his underparka off, so she could examine the wound better. He grunted while taking the piece of clothing off. The wound had already crusted, so threads of the parka opened the wound back up.

While Katara was tending to Mako's injuries, Sokka and Yue arrived at the oasis on Appa. They saw Mako's wound and raced over to check if he was alright.

"Don't worry Sokka, I'll be fine. I thought you'd be here long before me. Ran into some trouble too?" Mako figured they had, judging from their late arrival.

"Yeah, a few soldiers. No biggy…" Looking around, Sokka noticed Aang was missing. "..Where's Aang?"

Katara was looking at her feet when she informed Sokka of what had happened, she was ashamed to admit having lost Aang to Zuko.

"Prince Zuko took him." Mako saw Katara's face and wanted to spare her from informing her brother.

Sokka turned to his sister and tried to make her feel less guilty. "You did everything you could. And now we need to do everything we can to get him back…" Katara started to get tears in her eyes from the guilt that was consuming her.

Mako was sitting next to her and slung an arm around her shoulder, wanting to keep her from crying. She looked up and smiled beautifully at him. "…Zuko couldn't have gotten far, we'll find him. Aang's gonna be fine." Sokka finished in a determined voice. Mako only hoped that Sokka's trust wasn't misplaced.

They were flying through the blizzard when Yue suddenly spoke. "Don't worry, Prince Zuko can't be getting too far in this weather."

"I'm not worried they'll get away in the blizzard, I'm worried that they won't." the concern was clearly audible in Katara's voice.

Then Sokka wanted to reassure everybody that everyone would be alright after this. "They're not gonna die in this blizzard, if we know anything it's that Zuko never gives up. They'll survive and we'll find them." He was so sure that Mako himself was starting to believe it'd be possible they'd find him.

People stayed quiet for a while and kept to their inner thoughts, but Mako saw Katara frown and he didn't like it one bit. "You're much more beautiful when you smile, you know." Mako whispered. He didn't want Sokka to hear that comment about his sister.

Katara was startled to hear that a man found her attractive when she smiled. "Oh… well I'm worried about Aang." she said while blushing from the compliment.

"Oh, he'll be fine. He's the avatar after all…" he scooted closer to Katara and took her face in his hands in a gentle gesture. "… we'll find him and get him back from Zuko."

Katara saw the determined glint in his eyes, and felt reassured once more by Mako. "You're right, I have to believe in him." she started to blush again when she felt him brush away the residual moisture on her cheeks with his thumb. Feeling empowered by a feeling unknown to her, she grabbed Mako's parka and slowly pulled him closer to her lips. He knew what she was trying to do, so he closed his eyes and waited for her to kiss him.

Suddenly there was a bright white light in the sky, landing a few 100 meters into a cavern. Katara stopped what she was doing and immediately knew what it was. "Look! That's got to be Aang! Appa, yip yip!" Katara yelled from the saddle to her brother.

Appa landed near the cavern, where they saw a figure looming over a tied up Aang. Katara immediately jumped down and went into a waterbending stance. Mako did the same and moved to stand in front of Katara, wanting to protect her from the frowning firebender. She didn't allow him to fight her battles though, so she stopped him before he could.

"No Mako, _I_ need to finish this." She didn't even look at him when she said it, her glare stayed on Zuko the entire time.

"Here for a rematch?" Zuko was confident when he went into an offensive stance.

Katara's glare intensified when she heard the smugness in his voice, "Trust me Zuko, it won't be much of a rematch." she responded with a scoff.

Zuko threw a fireball at her, which she quickly doused with a ball of water. Next she encased Zuko in a pillar of ice and lifted him in the air. To finish the fight, she made Zuko slam into the ground by bending the pillar back to the ground at an incredible speed.

Zuko was instantly knocked out and Sokka ran over to Aang to free him from the ropes constricting him. Aang was saying something about the ocean and moon spirits that were in danger, so everyone got back on Appa.

Aang went to sit on Appa's head, but looked back at Zuko's unmoving form and said that he didn't want to leave him behind. Sokka protested and didn't want to take someone with him who was trying to kill them all the time.

Sokka kept complaining while Aang jumped up on Appa with Zuko on his back. While they were flying back, the moon suddenly went blood red. Mako instantly felt weakened and looked over at Katara to see if she felt it too. She looked at the moon with a rather frightened look.

"I feel weaker for some reason." Mako informed the group how he physically felt.

"I feel it too. It's like I'm incomplete." Katara agreed, feeling the same emptiness that Mako felt.

Sitting on top of Appa's head, Aan0g was completely serious when he spoke. "The moon spirit is in trouble."

Yue was grabbing her head like she had a severe headache. Sokka was worried and quickly moved up next to her and asked if she was alright. She started telling the tale that was known throughout the north pole. The moon spirit saved her life when she was a sick baby, making her hair turn white.

They were coming close to the oasis and saw a group of fire benders standing near the pond. There was a man in a cape standing in front of the group holding up a sack in his hand. "That's Zhao!", Sokka yelled from the front of the saddle.

When they landed, the Gaang, except for Yue, immediately went into an offensive stance. The firebenders did the same while Zhao held up the sack with his right hand and positioned his left fist directly behind it, threatening to kill it's content. "Don't even bother…" Zhao mockingly said to the group of children in front of him.

Aang quickly lowered his staff, afraid that Zhao would go through with his threat if he made the wrong move. "Zhao! Don't!"

Zhao went on talking about that it was his destiny to destroy the last of the water tribes. While he said that, Mako felt his rage boiling up and he wanted to take a step forward to fight the man who was threatening his home. Katara however stopped him by taking his arm and whispering "don't, he's not worth it.". Mako turned to her and immediately felt his anger dissipate. He felt Katara loosening up his hand so she could slip her own in it. Feeling her squeeze his hand, he nearly forgot about the Fire nation besieging his home.

Suddenly he heard a threatening voice coming from his left. It was an old man who was standing in a firebending position, shouting at Zhao. Mako was confused that a firebender was opposing his general for the sake of a watertribe spirit. "Whatever you do to that spirit, I'll unleash on you tenfold! Let it go, now!" He was kind of awe inspiring when he saw the old man threatening the general, Mako wouldn't want to get on the man's bad side.

Surprisingly, Zhao relented and let the moon spirit fall back into the water of the pond. But the sighs of relief were soon replaced by gasps of dread when Zhao, with a shout, shot a stream of fire directly at the two koi fish. When the fire dissipated, everybody noticed that everything was pitch black. Mako looked up into the sky, but couldn't locate the moon anywhere in the heavens.

When everybody was looking up at the disappearing moon, the old man attacked the group of firebenders. He was fairly quick in disposing of Zhao's guards, but Zhao already fled the scene when he saw the old man's powers.

Mako gaped at the firebenders skills, when Katara informed him of the man's identity. "That's general Iroh, he's Zuko's uncle." Knowing enough already, Mako moved into a defensive stance.

Katara noticed his reaction and was quick to further explain. "Oh no, he's not like Zuko. You don't need to worry about him." Mako still had his reservations, but decided to trust Katara.

Mako watched as Iroh picked up the body of the moon spirit, when the group went over to stand around the man.

"There's no hope now… it's over." Princess Yue said, sounding defeated with tears in her eyes.

Suddenly there was a glow coming from Mako's right, where the avatar's tattoo's and eyes were glowing. "No, it's not over!" he suddenly went into the pond, with Katara reaching out for him. Mako didn't want Katara to get hurt when the avatar was in this unpredictable state, so he put a hand on her shoulder to stop her. She turned around and saw the concern in Mako's eyes, so she let the avatar go and do whatever he needed to do.

"I'm worried, Mako. He isn't in control when he's in the avatar state, he might get hurt." She voiced the concern that was hidden beneath those deep blue eyes.

Mako looked deep into those azure orbs and believed that he would drown if he stared at them any longer. He reached a hand up to her face and gently placed it on her cheek. Feeling her leaning in to his touch, Mako knew he had her distracted from everything that was going on.

While they were so caught up in the moment, they barely noticed Aang submerging into the water and becoming one with the ocean spirit. The giant koi fish moved towards the fire nation ships and took out all soldiers that were on its path.

Back at the spirit oasis, Katara, Mako, Iroh, Sokka and Yue were all sitting around the body of the dead moon spirit. Sokka had his arm around Yue in an effort to comfort her, when Katara said what everybody thought. "It's too late… It's dead." She broke the silence in a sad tone.

Mako hated hearing Katara talk in such a sad tone. So he mimicked Sokka and placed his arm around Katara's shoulder, pulling her closer to him.

When Iroh suggested that Yue had some of the moon spirit's life in her, she immediately wanted to give up her own life to save the moon. Sokka protested vehemently but Yue was too stubborn. When she laid her hands on the fish's body, her lifeless body fell into Sokka's arms who had tears in his eyes when he announced that she had died.

Mako felt Katara completely turning to him and hugging his form tightly, while sobbing harder and harder in his chest. Mako held her in his arms, when Yue's body suddenly vanished and out of thin air a form of a beautiful girl appeared. Quickly recognizing that it was Yue, she talked to Sokka and kissed him lovingly on his lips. When she vanished again, he looked back at Katara who was looking up at him in a sad expression. He reached up to her face and wiped away the tear marks that were on her face.

"Maybe we should leave Sokka alone for a moment." Mako whispered at Katara.

"Yeah…" Katara was sad to see her brother hurt so much, but also because she wouldn't be able to hug Mako anymore. After a moment they broke their embrace and walked away from the oasis, giving Sokka the space he needed to process what just happened.

When Mako walked Katara home after the whole ordeal, the urge to hold her hand was overwhelming. But he was too embarrassed to do it, plus he didn't believe that it'd be the right time for him to try something with her.

When they reached her house, they stopped and turned towards each other. "Mako… thank you for helping us. We're in your debt." Katara spoke first, wanting to break the awkward tension that was hanging in the air.

"You don't need to thank me Katara. I'm always glad to help you out." Mako blushed, saying 'you' instead of 'you guys'.

Katara noticed the reddening in his cheeks, as well as his little slip-up. She liked seeing him getting all embarrassed.

"Will I see you tomorrow?" he asked hesitantly, when she didn't reply.

Katara almost forgot that today was the last day she would be at the north pole. "Oh, I almost forgot. Tomorrow we head off towards the Earth Kingdom… so I guess you won't be seeing me anymore." She was getting rather depressed when she realized she would never see the blonde waterbender again.

The hopeful smile on Mako's face disappeared as soon as she said this, instead it was replaced by a disappointed look. "Oh… that… sucks."

"Yeah…" Katara suddenly came up with an idea that made her smile like there was no tomorrow. "Couldn't you come with us?" she asked very excitedly.

Mako was startled by the invitation, but soon found him smiling from ear to ear while already nodding. He looked at Katara's expression and believed she wanted him to say yes as badly as himself. "I'll have to inform my family, but otherwise… yes, Katara I would love to accompany you on your journey."

Katara was nearly jumping up and down in pure bliss, when she heard him say yes. "Oh great, we're gonna have so much fun!" she was almost clapping her hands, that's how happy she was.

Mako felt butterflies in his stomach, when he saw her so content with his answer. "Of course… But I have to go now. I'll see you tomorrow though." He grabbed her by the shoulders to plant a kiss on her cheek, but was surprised when he felt something moist and warm pressing up against his lips.

Opening his eyes, he saw that Katara moved her head so that their lips met halfway. Neither wanted to let the pleasurable feeling go, so they stood there for a few seconds. When they broke the kiss, they were looking at each other with loving eyes.

"That was… amazing." They were still connected by their foreheads when Mako spoke.

"Yeah… it was." Katara was smiling when she heard his delightful remark.

Mako hated to ruin the moment, but he needed to check up on his family. "I'll see you tomorrow in front of the palace at dawn, 'kay?" staring into Katara's eyes, he almost didn't feel her nod.

Finally being able to tear himself away from Katara, he walked away while turning around after a couple steps to see her watching him with a smile. He smiled back and waved, before he turned around and made his way back home. All the while almost skipping from pure happiness.

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**AN: You guys know what to do... use that review button! **


	10. Chapter 10: Leaving the tribe

**I was barely able to get this chapter online for today. Tomorrow i'll have more time to write. Prepare for some Earth Kingdom action in the following chapter!**

**Chapter 10: Leaving the tribe**

When Mako stepped through the door of his house, he was immediately hugged to death by his mother. "Oh thank the spirits you're safe! I thought you would get yourself killed out there!" Mako's mom , Laka, said in one big relieved breath.

"Don't worry mom, I'm fine… Hey, where's dad? I need to speak to you both." After Mako reassured his mother that everything was fine, his expression turned serious.

His mother was confused by his tone of voice, but she answered him anyway. "Your father is in the bathroom, bending the tub back together… What do you want to talk about?"

Knowing his mother would ask what it was about, he dodged the question so he didn't have to repeat what he wanted to say. "Let's go to dad first, then I'll tell you."

Not long after, he found his dad in the bathroom. Kuda was bending every item that broke during the attack, back together to its original state. He saw his son standing at the entrance when he called him forth. Mako did as he was told and embraced the man he called his father.

"I'm so glad you made it out alive, Mako. Master Pakku said you held your own quite well today." His dad was obviously proud of his son for doing well in his first battle.

"Thanks dad…" he let go of the older man and his expression turned serious once more, "… but I have to talk to you guys about something." He turned to the both of them and wanted to explain further. "I want to go with the avatar on his journey to end this war." He said with determination in his voice.

His father and mother both looked at Mako, then back at each other, and back at Mako. His father spoke after a while. "You want to leave the north pole?" they didn't like the idea of their youngest son risking his life in a never ending war.

Mako saw their looks, but didn't lose his confidence on the matter. "Yes, and I will be leaving today."

His parents looked at each other once again, followed with a sigh from both. "Mako, is this because Kyra didn't want to marry you?" his mother spoke to him in disappointment.

"No, I'm leaving to end this ridiculous war and protect our people." He tried to stay calm, but was agitated when Kyra was mentioned.

Kuda frowned and raised his voice, "Well I'm your father, and I say you stay here." Laka nodded while her husband was speaking.

Mako had to let out a sigh, when he heard his father's response. "Dad… you know I love you and mom, but I have to do this. I don't know what to do with my life."

His father was quick to respond in an angry scowl. "Why can't you figure that out in the north pole? You think you'll find it with the avatar?" His father walked up to him, until he was right in Mako's face.

Mako didn't want to give in by looking away, so he kept staring back at his father. "Yes."

"Well then go!" his father yelled at him, swiftly turning back around and leaving Mako and his mother standing in his wake.

After an initial moment of silence between him and his mother, Laka broke the silence by reassuring Mako. "He doesn't mean it, he wants you to stay."

Mako looked at his mother with a frown still on his face. "Yeah… I know."

He went into his room while he spoke further. "I was just coming back to tell you guys I was leaving, I didn't know it would turn out this way." He turned to his mother with an apologetic look in his eyes.

His mother quickly slung her arms around him as best she could, and whispered: "How can I keep you from going?"

Returning the embrace, Mako had to let a smile appear on his face. His mother never gave up quickly. "You can't."

He heard a sniff coming from his mother when she started speaking again. "I'll miss you." She sounded so sad, Mako wanted to lift her spirits.

"Me too. But don't worry mom, I'll come back. Tell dad I'll miss him too." He figured that this would be the last time he would see his parents, so he got a little emotional.

"I have to get going now…"

"Alright… be safe Mako." his mother released him from her hold and went to talk to Kuda, wiping away a tear when she walked away.

He looked over his room and collected the things he would need on his journey. He saw his axe hanging on the wall and moved to take it with him. When he had everything he needed, Mako went to the palace so he could join the Gaang to leave his homeland.

He came up to the palace, where he saw the Gaang all hugging each other. Katara saw him coming up to them and immediately felt a blush creep in on her face. She remembered his lips on hers the night before, and felt those bugs flying around in her stomach again.

She released the group's embrace and moved in Mako's direction. When they stood in front of each other and couldn't look the other in the eye. "H… hey, Mako." She hesitantly greeted him.

Mako looked up at Katara to see that she was looking at her feet. "Hey Katara…" he replied.

When he spoke, Katara glanced at him but didn't see a bag or something that would indicate he was coming with them. Immediately feeling disappointed, Katara voiced her concerns. "You aren't coming with us?"

"Well… if you'll still have me, I would love to accompany you." Mako saw Katara's expression change from disappointed to ecstatic in the blink of an eye.

"Great!" she threw her arms around him when she heard his reply.

"Mako!" Kuda was running up to the palace, yelling so his son would hear him. "Wait son!"

When his father reached him and Katara, Mako wondered what his dad was doing here. "Dad? What are you doing here?"

His dad was looking as if he would die from exhaustion, he was breathing heavily. "I didn't want to let you leave with us fighting."

Mako didn't want his father to do this in front of Katara, so he interrupted him. "Dad…"

Kuda wanted to finish, so he went on. "If I can't get you to stay, I want to let you know that I love you and hope you'll be safe."

Mako saw the emotional glint in his dad's eyes, so he took a step forward and embraced his dad for one last time. "Thanks dad." he whispered, so only his father would hear.

They stood there for a moment, until his father let go and walked away back to this house.

Mako stood there, watching his father leave when he heard Katara speaking to him. "Are you alright?"

Mako started to smile when he heard her. "Better than ever." He felt relieved that he and his father didn't left things on the wrong foot.

Katara too was relieved that Mako wouldn't be too down while they would be traveling. "Good… are you ready to leave then?"

He saw his father look back at him just before he rounded the corner, "Yeah, let's go."

Aang and Sokka greeted the new addition to their group and quickly took him in as their own.

His first flying experience was kind of frightening, but he adapted quite quickly. They were flying away on Appa heading for Omashu, leaving the northern water tribe behind them. Mako looked back at his homeland, proudly watching how his tribe still thrived after a 100 years of warfare. He turned back around when he could no longer see his tribe, conversing with his new friends and Katara. They flew off into the horizon with the rising sun on their backs, in search of new adventures.

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**AN: Have you read it? Then you still have to review! come on, get to it! (please? XD)**


	11. Chapter 11: Cave of two lovers

**Sorry for the late update, but I find it difficult to write all of a sudden. It'll hopefully get back to me.**

Chapter 11: Cave of two lovers

After having flown for 2 days straight, Aang decided Appa should have some rest. So they stopped at a river going through the mountains that crossed a walking path. Katara and Aang saw this as the opportune moment to practice their waterbending as their first teacher-pupil lesson.

Mako believed this to be a great idea and went to practice a little further away on his own. When they were practicing for a while, Mako took a little break and decided to watch Katara teaching Aang. She only had her bindings on, which was why Mako couldn't concentrate properly and said he'd practice alone.

Seeing the avatar trying the octopus stance, Mako watched as Katara went over to him to correct his stance. While she stood behind him moving him in the right position, Mako saw the avatar's blush. Immediately his muscles tensed up and a frown appeared on his face. While he stood there watching, ice was forming around his feet and spread quickly in a massive circle. He was snapped out of his jealous gaze, when Sokka was trapped in the ice.

"Hey, Mako! You froze my butt in place! I can't get out!" he was grunting while he tried to free his ass out of the ice.

Mako looked at the ice and apologized quickly. "Oh sorry Sokka. I wasn't paying attention to what I was doing."

Even with all the commotion, Katara and Aang didn't notice what went on on the other side of the river. Aang got the hang of the octopus form, while Katara was shooting icicles at him.

Suddenly they heard singing come from the forest, accompanied by a guitar-like instrument. There were a group of people coming out of the forest path, heading over to where they were.

"He-hey, river people!" The singer said when they stopped in front of the Gaang.

"We're not river people." Katara looked confused when she answered the singer.

The nomads with the flute and guitar introduced themselves as Chong and Lily. They had a vague look on their face, looking as if he was somewhere else with his mind. Aang was excited when they told him they were nomads, being a nomad himself and all.

Sokka wasn't looking very happy when Chong commented on his underwear, scooting away embarrassed with Momo covering the view of his underpants.

Some time later, the 2 groups mingled and were all sharing stories or braiding their hair. Mako was talking to Moku, who was telling him about a beautiful waterfall that created a never-ending rainbow.

Sokka came marching up to them, telling the other they needed to get going and head to Omashu. He facepalmed when Chong said something about Omashu, and a secret tunnel leading to the city. Intrigued by the information, Mako asked what he knew about that tunnel. Chong started to sing a nice song, telling about 2 lovers and a tunnel. The Gaang, minus Sokka, clapped when he finished.

Sokka thought best to keep travelling on Appa, seeing it would make the giant beast uncomfortable to go underground.

Not much later, the Gaang was back with the nomads. Seeing Chong's inquisitive look, Mako decided he should explain why they were back already. "The flying thing didn't take off well with the Fire nation." He gestured at his clothes, which were severely burned.

The group went on to find that tunnel so they could go around the Fire nation's backs and reach Omashu. While they were nearing the entrance, Lily said that the only way you would be able to get out of the cursed tunnel was if you believe in love. Upon hearing that the cave was cursed, Sokka stopped walking and made some weird noises and hand gestures. "Curse?" he said in a whiny voice.

"What exactly is this curse?" he went on, back to using his regular voice.

"The curse says that only those who trust in love are able to get out of the caves. Otherwise you'll be trapped in them forever." Chong explained to Sokka what the curse was.

Sokka got all wide eyed and was quick to dismiss the tunnels. "Oh no, we're not going through some cursed hole!"

Moku saw a big plume of smoke coming from the horizon behind them and mistook it for a big campfire. Katara saw it and quickly realized that the Fire nation were hot on their tale. The group realized that the fire nation would be too much too handle, so they took their chances in the caves.

While they were heading inside the cave, they heard a big rumbling sound coming from the entrance. The light that poured in from it disappeared, and Appa started to panic because they were trapped.

"Don't worry Appa, we'll be alright… I hope." Katara tried to reassure the beast and calm it down.

They kept walking further and further into the tunnel, always coming up to a dead end. Sokka had no clue how, but he guessed that the tunnels changed after a while. He tried to make a map of the caves, but it would be useless if the caves never stayed the same.

Suddenly there was a cry coming from the dark end of the cave, sounding like something ferocious. Out of nowhere, a wolfbat appeared and attacked the group. Sokka tried to scare it away with fire from the torches, but accidentally hit Appa's foot in the process. Appa got scared and trashed around in the cave. Mako wanted to protect Katara, so he went over to her and made sure that she wouldn't get hurt.

When Appa hit a big pillar, the ceiling began to crumble threatening to fall on top of the whole Gaang. Aang saw this and tackled the nomads to safety using airbending, while Mako broke out into a sprint to try and save Katara from the falling rocks. He made it just in time, they both fell down near the pile of rocks that composed the ceiling just seconds ago.

Looking over Katara, he didn't see any serious wounds but decided to ask anyway. "Are you hurt?"

"No I'm alright…" Katara was recovering from the impact, when she noticed something red on Mako's back. "…But _you_ aren't!"

Mako didn't know what she was referring to, so he looked at her quizzically. "Huh, what are you talking about?"

"Your back! It's bleeding…" Katara worried that it would be a serious wound which would be hard to treat when they were stuck in a cave.

Mako started to go up and down his back with his hands, when he felt something wet. "That's not my blood… I think it was that wolfbat."

Katara was instantly relieved that Mako wasn't seriously hurt, so she looked around for a way back to the rest of the group. "We should try and find the group." she said, worry creeping in again.

"We will, but we need to get going. We don't have much light left." Mako noticed the torch was burned halfway through.

Katara nodded, and gestured for him to take the lead.

While they were walking through the tunnels, Appa grew increasingly more growly. The light was slowly going out, so they should hurry and find an exit soon.

"Appa is scared." Mako stated the obvious. But before Katara could react, he went on. "…Are you?"

Katara hated to admit it, but she was kind of scared not being able to get out of this situation. "A little." She was looking away, she didn't want him to see her embarrassment.

Mako saw this and let a small smile appear on his face. "It's okay, you know…" he decreased the distance between them, and took her hand in his. "… I am too."

When she felt Mako's hand holding hers, she felt butterflies in her stomach. "Good to know I'm not alone on this." She blushingly looked at their entwining fingers, and went off into the dark.

They walked for 5 minutes until they saw a big round door. They both thought it could be a possible exit, so they quickly made their way over there.

"It could be the exit." Mako said what they both thought.

"But how do we get it open?" Katara finished, discovering the problem at hand.

Suddenly they heard a deep growl coming from behind them. When they both turned around, they saw Appa ready to charge for the door. Looking back at each other with giant eyes, they jumped backwards so that Appa wouldn't crush them.

With a loud thump, Appa managed to get the door open. Katara and Mako stepped through and nothing but darkness greeted them. "Great, apparently it's just another tunnel." Mako was disappointed that they weren't out of the caves already.

Katara held the torch up high, and noticed that it wasn't a cave but more like a room. "This isn't a tunnel…" she looked down and could barely make out 2 tombs in the middle of the room. "…it's a tomb."

They made their way down to the 2 graves, and came up to a massive stone sarcophagus. Mako remembered the song from the nomads and realized who was lying in front of them. "These must be the 2 lovers from the legend…." He looked at the 2 graves and noticed that there were drawings carved on them. "… these pictures must tell their story."

Katara came over to where Mako was standing, when she looked in awe at the story that was shown on the tombs. Katara decided that she should read out loud for the both of them so the story would come alive more.

When Katara finished the story, she turned around to a giant statue of 2 people kissing each other. "Love is brightest in the dark."

Mako thought the story was beautiful, and would like to experience that kind of all-conquering love as well. But getting out of these tunnels was priority right now, so he wondered if Katara came up with an idea. "How are we gonna find our way out of these tunnels?"

Katara was still thinking about the story about Oma and Shu, when she heard Mako's question. She came up with an idea, but was kind of embarrassed to say it. "I have an idea…" she turned around when she said it, so Mako wouldn't see her blush.

Mako got hopeful when he heard Katara's response. "What?"

"Never mind, it's too crazy." She quickly regretted bringing up the idea.

Mako wasn't sure why she acted so strange, but he wanted to get out of these caves. "Katara, what is it?"

After his insistence, Katara decided to hesitantly explain her idea. "I was thinking… the curse says we'll be trapped in here forever, unless we trust in love…" she stopped for a second to hear Mako's confirmation he was listening.

"Right…" he already knew this, so he gestured for her to go on.

"…And here it says, love is brightest in the dark. There's even a picture with 2 people kissing…" she looked at her feet again.

Mako thought he knew what she was implying. "Katara, where are you going with this?"

She went on with an even bigger blush, and told him her idea. "So… what if _we_ kissed?" she was nearly as red as a tomato, when she finished. She looked back up and saw joy in his eyes.

Mako already hoped she would say that, so he was quick to approve of the idea. "That may work…" he stepped closer to her, feeling anticipation and butterflies in his stomach.

Katara was relieved that Mako didn't shoot her idea down, so she kept looking back at him with the same heated gaze.

When Mako reached Katara, he gently placed a hand on her face and the other on her waist. He came closer to her lips, when he suddenly felt Katara pulling at his clothes. The two of them shared a chaste kiss, not unlike the one at the north pole.

When they pulled away, nothing happened. They were still in the same dark tomb.

"Well that didn't work out." Mako was disappointed that nothing happened. He looked at Katara and saw the same disappointed look on her face.

"Yeah… we better move on and find that exit." The torch was running really low, they only had about half an hour.

When they were back in the cave system, the torch started to flicker. "Katara, we don't have much time left…" Mako was being realistic, and believed he would die here with Katara.

Katara thought the same thing, so she turned to Mako. "Yeah…" she looked up into Mako's eyes and was falling into those deep blue eyes. "… if we die here…", she was unable to finish her sentence because Mako took her in his arms and hugged her.

"Shhhh, don't say such thing.", Mako didn't want to hear her say it, so he shushed her.

When they loosened the hug, they look back into each other's eyes and both noticed the glazing with one another. With the torch fighting to stay lit, the two crept closer, and kissed as if they were thirsty and found the others mouth to be their oasis. First they just kissed on the lips, but it got more intense when Mako began to suck on her lower lip.

He requested entrance to her mouth by licking her lips with his tongue. She soon complied by opening her mouth just a little bit, immediately feeling Mako's tongue darting through and exploring it. Katara met his tongue with her own, and started a ferocious battle with both not wanting to relent.

While they were kissing passionately, they didn't notice the crystals on the ceiling lighting up. They were still exploring each other's mouths, moans coming from the both of them. But when Mako moved away from her mouth and went down her neck she arched her head back and finally opened her eyes.

She looked at the crystals that were lighting the way through the tunnels. She realized that it showed them where the exit was. "Mako… the crys… oh Tui!" she couldn't think straight with Mako sucking her earlobe, and licking the spot that connected her shoulder and neck.

Mako was smiling, feeling happy that he could make her stutter and moan like that. He came back up from her neck and rested his forehead against hers. "What is it, Katara?" he asked in a husky voice.

Katara was somewhat disappointed, but also happy that she could think properly again. "Look at the ceiling."

Mako looked up and, for the first time, noticed the green hue that was coming from the crystals. He didn't understand why the crystals were lighting up now, but not when they kissed half an hour ago. He didn't want to question it, but rather wanted to get the hell out of this place.

They kept following the light of the crystals and, not long after, found the exit of the labyrinth. They were so extatic that they jumped into each other's arms, and kissed for the third time today. While they were eating each other's mouths, Katara remembered that Aang and Sokka were still in the caves. She quickly broke the kiss, hearing an annoyed and whining Mako.

"Sokka and Aang are still in there!" she said in an exasperated voice.

Mako realized that the rest was still trapped in the cave system, and berated himself for his stupidity of not thinking of it sooner. "Damn… Now that we know how to get out, we can go back and find them?" he tried to see what she'd think of that.

She didn't get a chance to give her opinion of the matter, because there was a loud rumbling coming from the cave's exit. Suddenly two giant badgermoles came from both sides of the exit. They instantaneously bent into a defensive stance, wanting to protect the other.

When they took a better look at the animals, they saw people sitting on top of them. One was waving at them, dressed in a blue attire. "Sokka!" Katara recognized the boy sitting on top of the badgermole.

Sokka slid of the giant animal and ran over to the two waterbenders. "How did you guys get out?" he said in a very excited voice.

"Just like the legend says, we let love lead the way…" Mako looked at Katara smiling, with Katara blushing as she didn't dare look at him.

Sokka didn't notice what was going on between the 2 before them, "Really? We let giant ferocious beasts lead our way."

The badgermoles were going back into the mountain with Sokka and Aang waving them off.

The Gaang realized that they should say goodbye to the nomads, because they weren't going to Omashu. Chong embraced an embarrassed Sokka, and joined the retreating nomads while singing his love song. _Even if you're lost, you can't lose the love because it's in your heart. Aaaah ah aaaaah._

Mako and Katara were standing behind Sokka and Aang, who were waving at the nomads. When they heard the song, Mako reached for Katara's hand. Katara started to blush when she felt Mako's fingers entwine with hers.

The group headed off towards the top of the mountain, which overlooked the city of Omashu. Sokka took the lead, while the rest trailed after him. "Ladies and gentlemen, let me present to you: the city of O…" he saw the plumes of smoke and the giant Fire nation flag hanging from the outer wall. "… oh no."

The rest of the Gaang went up the hill, running to see what the problem was. When they reached the top, they couldn't believe their eyes.

Omashu was conquered.

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**AN: Motivate me by reviewing! Thanks for reading.**


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